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END OF UNIFORMITY?: A redesign of US notes may lead to the replacement or retooling of the seven million vending machines across the country at a cost of US$3.5 billion.
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WASHINGTON - THE size, colour and feel of American money may have to change now that a federal appeals court has ruled that blind and visually impaired people are discriminated against by the country's paper currency.
The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit upheld a 2006 district court ruling that could force the country to redesign its money so blind people can distinguish the different denominations, which are now all the same size and colour.
The ruling on a 2002 suit by the American Council of the Blind is sure to please blind people and those whose sight is weakening with illness or age.
Unless overturned on appeal, it also holds the potential to open new fashion frontiers for wallet makers and cause the term 'greenback' to become increasingly quaint.
It can also lead to the replacement or retooling of the seven million vending machines that dispense food and beverages across the country - a cost that would amount to US$3.5 billion (S$4.8 billion), according to an industry group.
The 2-1 decision on Tuesday held that the Treasury Department had failed to demonstrate that it would be too burdensome to make bills of different sizes or add features that could be read by touch to distinguish monetary value.
'A large majority of other currency systems have accommodated the visually impaired, and the Secretary does not explain why US currency should be any different,' Judge Judith Rogers wrote, referring to Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, the nominal defendant.
The judge compared the US notes with currency from Japan, Canada or European states, including Swiss bills, which contained details such as 'embossed dots' and foil features that could be identified by touch.
The court did not say what must be done to solve the problem.
The government could ask the full appeals court (one of whose judges is blind) to reconsider the matter, or it could appeal the issue to the US Supreme Court. It has 90 days to decide.
The Treasury Department said it was reviewing the ruling.
In the meantime, the department has been working 'to improve the nation's paper currency to best serve the needs of all Americans, including those who are blind or visually impaired', said Ms Brookly McLaughlin, deputy assistant secretary for public affairs.
Ms McLaughlin said the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, the Treasury agency that makes paper money, had already contracted with a research company to study ways to help those who are blind or have poor vision.
The results of the study will be available early next year and will be considered when new currency production equipment is introduced, she said.
NEW YORK TIMES, LOS ANGELES TIMES
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